page_title: Milwaukee Road 261
section_title: Revenue service and retirement (1944–1958)
hierarchical_section_title: Milwaukee Road 261 / History / Revenue service and retirement (1944–1958)
caption_attribution_description: English: Exterior of the MILW 261 steam locomotive cab
context_page_description: Milwaukee Road 261 is a class "S3" 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company, in Schenectady, New York in July 1944, for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road".
  It was used for heavy mainline freight work until being retired by the railroad in 1954. Instead of being cut up for scrap, 261 was preserved and donated to the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin in 1958. Today, the locomotive is owned, operated, and maintained by Minneapolis-based nonprofit organization Friends of the 261, which runs occasional and seasonal excursion trains using the locomotive. The steam engine, restored in 1993, has logged more than 25,000 miles under its own power since that time.
context_section_description: Built by the American Locomotive Company in July 1944, 261 was originally operated by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, which was also known as the Milwaukee Road. The locomotive, weighing 460,000 pounds (210,000 kg), is rated at a maximum of 4,500 hp (3,400 kW) and maximum speed of 100 mph (160 km/h), is coal fueled. It operated with the railroad until retiring in 1954, and was eventually donated to the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin. As the new museum's first acquisition, 261 was moved to the museum site in 1958.
caption: Exterior of the Milwaukee Road 261's cab.
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